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Dec 08, 2020 By Caleb Campbell Chris Garneau

NYC chamber pop artist Chris Garneau is releasing his latest single, “For Celeste,” premiering with Under the Radar. The song follows “Not the Child” and “Now On,” Garneau’s recent string of singles reflecting on childhood and queerness amidst resonant symphonic instrumentals and powerfully affecting vocals. Garneau’s fifth album, The Kind, is due out on January 29 via The Orchard.

With “For Celeste” Garneau has returned with an undeniably lush and soulful ballad and a moving tribute to owning identity and casting off shame. The thoughtful piano accompaniment drawing the listener into a slow-burning ballad as the instrumental swells with Garneau’s spotlit vocal performance. Swirls of synths, understated percussion, and touches of guitar fill out the track, but remain subdued, never distracting from Garneau’s evocative, heartrending vocals. With his newest song, Garneau faces his younger self and responds with empathy and compassion, refusing to live in shame. He sings, “You can give in a bit more easy/You can dance you can be young/Don’t have to try just be the child I always knew you were / Always knew you were /Don’t try to kill the little things they are a part of you/Surrender.”

Garneau says of the song, “Childhood tends to be romanticized in so many different ways, and I do understand that for some people childhood can be really carefree and beautiful. But what I think is more important to consider is the Spirit of a child rather than the experience itself. If we grow up queer or in any system of abuse or trauma, we aren’t granted the same freedoms as the others. This song is about getting the time back that you missed. Knowing that this is an impossible feat, however, what this song is really about is expressing yourself as an adult in such a way that you don’t feel inhibited or insecure. We often start chipping away at our core as we grow older, and the “inner child” becomes a separate, abstract creature.”

Garneau continues saying, “I am asking what that separation really is and if it even exists at all. When we lose ourselves in those formative years, drugs, alcohol, and other darker forces can be more seductive than ever. A tendency towards that world can also make a person inclined to present in a way that might not be their most whole truth. We are encouraged to please people and fit a binary. I hope this song encourages an embrace of our whole life, a certain patience, and real, practical love for one’s self.” Check out the song below a day early and watch for The Kind, out January 29 via The Orchard.